''Ledum'' was a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Ericaceae The Ericaceae () are a Family (biology), family of flowering plants, commonly known as the heath or heather family, found most commonly in acidic and infertile growing conditions. The family is large, with about 4,250 known species spread acros ...

, including eight species of

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has Leaf, foliage that remains green and functional throughout the year. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which lose their foliage completely during the winter or dry season. Consisting of many diffe ...

shrub A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...

native to cool temperate and subarctic regions of the

Northern Hemisphere The Northern Hemisphere is the half of Earth that is north of the equator. For other planets in the Solar System, north is defined by humans as being in the same celestial sphere, celestial hemisphere relative to the invariable plane of the Solar ...

and commonly known as Labrador tea. It is now recognised as a subsection of section

Rhododendron ''Rhododendron'' (; : ''rhododendra'') is a very large genus of about 1,024 species of woody plants in the Ericaceae, heath family (Ericaceae). They can be either evergreen or deciduous. Most species are native to eastern Asia and the Himalayan ...

, subgenus ''

'', of the genus ''

''.

Description

''Ledum'' species often grow together with poisonous plants such as bog-laurel and bog-rosemary, but certain species (e.g. '' L. groenlandicum'' and '' L. palustre'') are easily distinguished by the distinctive rust coloured fuzz on the bottom of leaves.

Taxonomy

Reclassification into ''Rhododendron''

Recent genetic evidence has shown that the species previously treated in this genus are correctly placed in the genus ''

'', where they are now treated as ''Rhododendron'' subsect. ''Ledum''. Because some of the species names used in ''Ledum'' could not be used in ''Rhododendron'' (the names already having been used for other species already in this large genus), new names had to be coined for them.

Species

The species listed in genus ''Ledum'' (accepted and synonyms), with their current accepted names are:

Species references

''Ledum'' ''Rhododendron'' Other

Hybrids

Natural hybrids (

nothospecies #REDIRECT Hybrid name In botanical nomenclature, a hybrid may be given a hybrid name, which is a special kind of botanical name, but there is no requirement that a hybrid name should be created for plants that are believed to be of hybrid origin. ...

) also occur. *''Ledum columbianum'' = ''Rhododendron'' × ''columbianum'' (''R. groenlandicum'' × ''R. neoglandulosum'') is listed by Harri Harmaja as a natural hybrid. *'' Rhododendron vanhoeffeni'' Abromeit is a probably hybrid between ''Ledum palustre'' subsp. ''decumbens'' and '' Rhododendron lapponicum''.

Uses

Some species (e.g. ''L. groenlandicum'') have been used to produce

Labrador tea Labrador tea is a common name for three closely related plant species in the genus ''Rhododendron'' as well as a herbal tea made from their leaves. All three species are primarily wetland plants in the Ericaceae, heath family. Labrador tea has b ...

. Other species have varying levels of toxicity (e.g. ''L. glandulosum''). Evergreen Labrador tea grows slowly, but retains its leaves year-round. Users should take care not to over-harvest leaves from any single plant.

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * {{Taxonbar, from=Q21389473 Ledum Flora of Alaska Herbs Herbal teas Plant subsections